


the prick of a needle, the call of the sea

by FrozenHearts



Category: The Old Guard (Comics), The Old Guard (Movie 2020)
Genre: Angst and Hurt/Comfort, But I'm only capable of writing sad shit so we both have to deal with it, Canon Compliant, Crying, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Grown ass men are gonna deal with their emotions or so help me, Hurt Joe | Yusuf Al-Kaysani, Hurt/Comfort, Immortal Husbands Joe | Yusuf Al-Kaysani/Nicky | Nicolò di Genova, Immortality, Immortals, Implied/Referenced Torture, Joe | Yusuf Al-Kaysani Needs a Hug, Joe | Yusuf Al-Kaysani and Nicky | Nicolò di Genova Acting Like a Married Couple, Joe | Yusuf Al-Kaysani and Nicky | Nicolò di Genova are in Love, Joe | Yusuf Al-Kaysani is an Incurable Romantic, Listen this was originally gonna be cutesy and fun, M/M, Medical Experimentation, Medical Torture, Medical Trauma, Men Crying, Nicky | Nicolò di Genova Cooks, Nicky | Nicolò di Genova Needs a Hug, Nicky | Nicolò di Genova Whump, One Shot, Post-Movie: The Old Guard (2020), Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Returning to Malta (The Old Guard), Romance, Sad, Sharing Clothes, Tumblr Ask Box Fic, Tumblr Prompt
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-07
Updated: 2020-10-07
Packaged: 2021-03-08 02:40:56
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,141
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26878342
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FrozenHearts/pseuds/FrozenHearts
Summary: A week after the events at Merrick Pharmaceuticals, Joe and Nicky share an early morning together.
Relationships: Joe | Yusuf Al-Kaysani/Nicky | Nicolò di Genova
Comments: 6
Kudos: 185





	the prick of a needle, the call of the sea

**Author's Note:**

> This was requested by the lovely moonlightandromache over on Tumblr, I apologise this is so late!!

Not for the first time, Joe found himself waking up in a cold sweat; there was a slight chill in the air that accompanied the dewy grass of an early morning and the window to the bedroom was open just enough to let a soft breeze in, the cold begging Joe to wake up and do something. Sweat beaded his forehead as he tried to catch his breath and he let himself sit there for a minute, chest heaving as he blinked the sleep out of his eyes, trying to get the image of...

Well. All of _that_ out of his head. Medical tables and too large needles and his Nicky straining against black velcro straps, trying to be brave, soft words echoing in his ear that it would be okay despite-

Joe shivered along with the curtains and he finally forced himself stand. He left the blanket in a crumpled heap where it fell off his legs to the floor, padding quietly out of the room, out of the cold, in search of where Nicky might be.

 _He's here,_ Joe thought upon entering the hallway and being assaulted with a myriad of smells, _praise be, he's here._ Joe picked up the pace, a small smile pulling at his lips as he entered the kitchen. 

Nicky was at the stove, throwing peppers and onions and whatever else into a small frying pan. The sizzle of onion was music to Joe's eats as he beamed at Nicky's back, slowly reaching out to touch, to test it he was real, if he was going to wake up and find himself strapped down and poked and prodded and-

Nicky's soft humming pulled Joe from his thoughts and his heart raced as he allowed himself to press his chest to Nicky's back, sternum aligned with the knobs of his spine and before he could stop himself he pressed a small kiss to the nape of Nicky's neck, breathing in the scent of his skin, the heat of the oven warming him up where an open window left him shivering. 

"Good morning," Nicky didn't look up from the pan, "I hope you're okay with omelettes for breakfast."

"More than okay, habibi," Joe whispered and he relished in the small shiver Nicky offered as Joe let his breath ghost along the shell of his ear, "you weren't there when I woke up."

"Some people like to get up early," Nicky said breathlessly, then after a pause he added so softly Joe almost missed it, "You looked so peaceful. I didn't want to wake you."

Joe wrapped his arms around Nicky's waist, squeezing in what he hoped was a reassuring manner before resting his chin on Nicky's shoulder. He watched as long fingers sprinkled salt and pepper into a goopy mess on the stove, deft wrists twirling the spatula just so he would avoid getting raw egg on his sleeve as it inches closer down his arm from where it had been rolled up. Joe let his eyes wander up Nicky's arm, taking in the deep faded blue against his pale skin and for a brief minute he found he would have liked to be able to sketch the image, capture Nicky's elegance in silk of the same color, a deep sea to get lost in after everything that happened.

It only hit him after Nicky turned slightly to press a sauteed pepper his lips, blushing slightly as Joe allowed himself to lick the grease from Nicky's finger.

"Is this my shirt?" Joe asked around a mouthful of pepper. It stung his throat as it went down, and for a second he thought of needles and IV bags but he pushed the thought away as Nicky pursed his lips, sheepishly averting his gaze as the egg in the pan popped for attention. 

"Nicky?" Joe let himself smile, tugging playfully on the hem, "This definitely is my shirt."

Nicky was quiet for a minute. The kitchen was suddenly a cavern, too big, too open, the pop of the skillet the only noise as Nicky turned the burner on low, reaching down to clasp Joe's hand with his own. 

His hands were shaking, Joe realized as they laced their fingers together, and he thought he heard Nicky sniff just a little bit. 

"I wanted to get the clinical smell off me," Nicky admitted under his breath. He squeezed Joe's hand tighter, knuckles turning white and Joe let him, a slight ache against his skin where Nicky's fingers dug in, desparately holding on as if Joe would disappear right there. 

Joe rested his cheek on Nicky's shoulder: the material of the shirt was worn thin, and he could feel the warmth off Nicky's skin as they allowed the silence to take over once more. Distantly, Joe remembered the window in their room was still open, letting himself sigh into the crook of Nicky's neck when he felt him start to shake once more. 

"I want to go," Nicky sighed. Tears dotted the corners of his eyes and Joe watched as he blinked them away furiously.

"To Malta?" Joe asked softly, his own voice trembling, lower lip quivering as he tried to keep it together. 

Nicky nodded, licking his lips, "We can stay in bed all day and you can do your art. Get yourself covered in charcoal until we can't smell anything else."

Joe wrinkled his nose, "And what would you smell like when we were done?"

Nicky huffed a laugh, "I would smell of sea salt as we throw the windows open without a care in the world and then..."

The burner clicked off, the flame under the pan petering out as quickly as if one had blown out a candle.

"And then?" Joe pressed, raising an eyebrow.

"And then we would mix them together until we can't tell what any smell is anymore."

Nicky hung his head, rubbing his thumb across Joe's knuckles as they stared down at the pan on the stove. Grease and oil still bubbled without a care in the world, the egg crackling with leftover heat and Joe pressed himself tighter to Nicky's back, just staring at the omelet as Nicky almost robotically dumped it on a plate.

"You think you can eat?" Nicky asked Joe carefully.

"If you want, we can just go back to bed," Joe offered, reaching up to brush a stray strand of hair from Nicky's eyes. 

Slowly, Nicky nodded, pulling Joe with him until they were back in the bedroom, the chill having settled and Joe didn't say anything as Nicky pulled him into bed, just held on tighter until Nicky's shivering died down.

He didn't bother picking the blanket back up off the floor, instead twisting his fingers into the hem of his shirt, savoring the warmth radiating from Nicky's body as they lay there facing an open window. 

**Author's Note:**

> I hope you enjoyed it!! Sorry the title kind of sucks lmao


End file.
